Many things are still unknown about the coronavirus pandemic. Massive progress could be made that greatly improves timetables and projections. Yet Smith’s words and power represent a significant challenge for professional sports to return — the NFL in particular.

The Niners' Richard Sherman signs autographs for fans after last season's win in September against the Steelers at Levi's Stadium. It's unclear if games will be played in the 2020 season, let alone ones with fans there. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images)

In recent days and weeks, a few rough proposals have leaked concerning the NBA, NHL and MLB.

Each of them are at least considering trying to move their entire league to a single site, city or region. This would, conceivably, create some kind of virus-free bubble for players, team officials and referees so games could be staged without fans for television purposes.

For the NBA, maybe it is the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, which has an arena attached. For the NHL, it’s the possibility of sparsely populated, yet rink-rich, North Dakota. For MLB, it’s the greater Phoenix area, that has numerous stadiums due to so many teams holding spring training in the area.

Each of these presents incredible logistical challenges, including requiring advances in testing and treatment (even without a vaccine). Who knows if they are doable.

Nothing wrong with considering everything. That’s what every business should be doing right now.

It’s clear that those leagues are wary of trying to do business as usual, namely traveling and staging games, even without fans, all over the place in traditional markets. If nothing else, you’d need every city, county and state (and in the NBA, NHL and MLB’s case even Canada) to buy in and sanction it.

One Santa Clara County could upend things. A few of them follow and it becomes infeasible. Why else try to even game plan out something as monumental as moving an entire baseball season to Arizona?

The NFL has had no such concept leak, probably because it would appear unworkable. It may be able to stage a season, just not that way. It’s one less option it has to consider.

The central location concept would seem best suited for the NBA, then the NHL. Each would need maybe only two months to hold its playoffs. MLB, with bigger rosters and attempting a four- or five-month regular season of sorts (albeit with 7-inning games) would seem less possible, at least at first glance.

Football teams however are huge, 53 players on an active roster, plus a small practice squad. Just the coaching staff (not counting athletic trainers, equipment personnel and so on) can rival the size of NHL and MLB teams. You can’t stuff the league into a couple of hotels.

Is there a city, or even a state, where you could stage 16 games a weekend, with NFL-suitable turf and facilities? Texas, with its many college and high school facilities is conceivable, but will all those schools even want that?

That’s just game day. A baseball season is mostly a never-ending run of games. Even basketball has limited practices. Football is as much about what happens during the week as on Sunday.